Solar collectors of various types and designs are well known and many are commercially available, however, they have not attracted great interest due to the high cost of installation. Both flat plate and concentrating (tracking) collectors in use today are primarily high cost (due to special design, construction and assembly requirement) and are usually not within a price range of the average home owner.
Flat plate collectors usually weigh 6 to 10 pounds per square foot. Efficiencies of most flat plate collectors also range from 30% to 60%. Installation costs are usually high due to weight (roof loading consideration may require additional bracing/construction) and special handling equipment is required for installation/maintenance.
Concentrating collectors, because of close tolerances and special design criteria of components, usually require special skills/tools for installation. Efficiencies of concentrating collectors are much greater than flat plat collectors which reduces the total number of square feet required, however, this reduction is offset by the higher cost.
Applicant's apparatus is a low cost, lightweight, high efficiency collector which can be manufactured in either kit form or pre-assembled form and does not require special skills or equipment for assembly or installation.